Workout set 28th January 2014

It was a public holiday in Australia yesterday so I gave a bit of a rest, went to bodypump class at my gym, but that wasn’t worth recording.
Today was abs day.

Group1:
10 x weighted sit up (5kg)
10 x Russian twists (7kg)
(I changed the Russian twists to standing dumbbell bends with 12 kg kettlebells after set 5)

Group 2:
10 x stiff leg dead lift (22.5kg)
10 x Roman chair hyperextensions (5kg dropped to 0kg after set 5)

It was a 42degree day and as I had rode my bike to work, I decided to skip the treadmill.
And then having a volleyball game at night, I think i overcompensated for the long weekend.

♡lubullu

Cottle on Coventry

I am a lover of the south Melbourne market. One thing I love is the variety of shops that are around the market. One of the shops being the coffee shop on coventry street. cottle on coventry.

Cottle on coventry

My housemates introduced this shop as I commented on the amazing scent of their coffee.
They also have the $8 coffee and cake deal or the $12.75 piadina and coffee deal. Their piadina is like a toasted Turkish bread, but i have heard they are Italian style toasted sandwiches.

Chicken piadina and coffee

I have had the mushroom piadina before, and I this time I ordered the chicken one. The mushroom piadina has haloumi as well which was amazing, and the chicken one had mushrooms, spinach and melted cheese. The coffee is smooth and deep and the milk is always frothed to the right texture and temperature.
You can buy coffee beans here too, so have a visit

♡lubullu

Testing ground

A friend’s birthday BBQ was held at the testing grounds which is a hidden away gem next to the arts centre.
It was a very cute little open space, which is quite artist friendly. They apparently have regular food and coffee truck visits so if you want some truck action, check this place out.

The entrance to the testing grounds next to the arts centre

It is a little difficult to find since there is no signs or any shops around the place. It is near the end of Sturt street and city road, so have patience and walk on to find your way to the entrance.

Inside thr testing grounds

The place has a free BBQ to use, and serves drinks at the bar. There is also a piano that is open to use for those artistically talented (or not).
It is a quirky little place that also has free short film screenings on some nights. Don’t be afraid to try it out after work sometime.

♡lubullu

Workout set 23rd January 2014

I am getting more and more lazy with my workouts. Or at least the recording of it.

As normal German volume training

Group 1:
10 x Dumbbell pec flyes (5kg)
10 x dumbbell rear deltoid raise (3.5kg)

Group 2:
10 x Dumbbell bench press (5 kg)
10 x lateral raise (3.5kg – 2.5kg)

I had to attend to someone who injured themselves in the gym in the middle of the set so I took a longer than expected break during set 4 of group 2. Normally, only take a break after set 5 and 10.

I had played a bit of volleyball before the weight exercise so I thought i’d give the treadmill a break.

A bit too busy with the australia day long weekend so I don’t know how this weekend will go with exercise, but hope I do get some exercise done.

♡lubullu

Workout set 21st January 2014

Normally I would have had a workout session on Monday, but after a firing weekend of helping a friend move, we decided to hit the hot springs on Monday afternoon and hence an unplanned skip to the normal workout.
The hot springs was so relaxing that I felt nearly every muscle relaxing and i guess that is why people take baths…

However, workout is normal on a Tuesday!

Group 1:
10 x Weighted sit up (5kg and then went down to 2.5kg)
10 x oblique dumbbell side bend (12kg)

Group 2:
10 x variation of superman (lifting arms and legs off the ground using lower back muscles)
10 x Russian twist (7kg medicine ball)

Near the end of the sets I was doing double the required reps as I wasn’t feeling the exercise at all.
As usual, 10 sets of each group with only a break after set 5 and 10.

After the workout, did my normal treadmill running, which starts at 6 incline, and today I tried a bit of interval training running at 13.5 speed for 30 seconds in between a minute of speed 11.

Haaa… tomorrow is off day! Yay!!

♡lubullu

Bluecorn

As the hotness of Melbourne was sleeping up, we decided to battle the hot with some hot Mexican food.
St.Kilda seemed like a nice area to eat, so it was bluecorn as per a friend’s request.

Bluecorn is located at 205 barkly street, St. Kilda, which is near the corner of barkly street and Acland street.

The heat must’ve brought everyone down to St. Kilda because the place was packed. Maybe it is the location, but after my dinner, I could say it is thanks to the food.

My friend and I ordered the slow cooked beef with sangria tacos ($29) and a chilli con carne with bread to share as an entree ($14)
Another friend ordered the pulled pork tacos and from his expression, it was amazing.
The slow cooked beef comes in a sizzling pot, and the beef just falls off the bone. The meat is cooked really well in this place, but the taco shells were a little confusing. They are not hard nor soft, so an in between Taco shell…
The chilli con carne was full of beef as well. The bread was nice and crisp, but would’ve loved some more.. (same goes to the taco shells for the slow cooked beef)
And guacamole is nice and soothes the chilli and strong flavours out.

We also had the crushed mint and lime lemonade (virgin mojito) for $7.50 which was perfect for the weather.

One waitress was very attentive considering the amount of people trying to fit into the air conditioned dining room, but the others were quite ignorant a lot of the times. It took quite a while to get the bill, pay it or get any drinks.
Overall, nice food and nice ambience. Would want to return to try the fajitas as they looked great.

♡lubullu

Workout set 16th, 17th January 2014

After feeling a bit sick and trying to cope with the extreme, and I mean extreme heat, it was so hot over the past week. As a recovery, we decided to take it ‘slightly’ easy.
(I have been a bit lazy with the blog writing so I’m writing for both days)

We’re still on German volume training, so as before, no rest in between the exercise only after set 5 and set 10 of each group.

16th January 2014

Group 1:

10 x dumbbell chest press (7.5kg each hand)

10 x one hand dumbbell row (7.5kg)

Group 2:

10 x barbell curl to press  (12.5kg)

10 x pushups (on an incline for me)

Finished up with treadmill workout:

2:00 – incline=6, speed=6

3:00 – incline = 6, speed= 9

3:00 – incline = 0, speed=11

2:00 – incline=0, speed=6

17th January 2014

As the chest workout yesterday was quite difficult, I decided to do half arms workout and half legs workout. Same as before, but only 5 sets of each group instead of 10.

Group 1:

10 x bicep curl – palms facing up (5kg each hand, near set 5 I changed to 3.5kg)

10 x tricep dip

Group 2:

10 x hammer curl – thumbs facing up (5 kg each hand)

10 x lying french press – hold plate arms above chest and pull down over head, and lift back to position (10 kg plate)

Group 3:

10 x sumo squat – wide stance feet pointing outwards (12kg kettle bell)

10 x calf raise (10kg each hand)

Group 4:

10 x tuck jump (half squat into jump tucking knees in to chest)

10 x straight leg dead lift (20 kg barbell)

Treadmill:

2:00 incline=6, speed =6

3:00 incline = 6, speed = 9

3:00 incline = 0, speed =11

After all these exercises, remember to stretch!

Let’s hope my body is coping tomorrow when I help my friend move….

Workout set 14th January 2014

It was forcasted to be a 43 degree day (yes! I live in Melbourne!) And hence we decided to hit the gym earlier than usual. I was feeling a bit queezy and I don’t know whether it was the heat or the dumplings i ate last night. Despite my weak stomach, it was abs day.

Group 1:
10 x sit ups (without any weights because I wasn’t feeling good)
10 x standing oblique bends (10kg)

Group 2:
10 x leg raises (changed to alternating leg raises after set #5)
10 x oblique crunches

Since I didn’t go hard on my training i decided I would do a little more on the cardio to finish it off.

9:00 at incline=0, speed=9
3:00 at inclined=0, speed=12

I don’t know how I am going to survive the 43 degree smelting temperature for the whole week!

♡lubullu

Workout set 13th January 2014

It has somewhat become a patttern, to go train in the gym with my friend. I am not sure what effects the exercises have had, but I guess I just have to persevere and continue on.

It is still German volume training and I have no idea if this is helping me, but my friend who has been working out for much longer than me is saying he us feeling it. So maybe this is working.

Group 1:
10 x back weight squats (barbell on back shoulder with weights, but this hurt my shoulder too much so I just had a 15kg weight held at my chest)
10 x calf raises with same weight

Group 2:
10 x straight leg deadlift (20kg) –make sure you don’t bend your back and if you’re not flexible, try with a little bend at knee, this might target more of the quads though
60 second wall sit

So, I changed my nomenclature such that I don’t get confused. Repeat each “group” 5 times and have a 60-120s rest, and then repeat another 5 times.

The training ended on the treadmill but my legs just wouldn’t work properly so I did a short run.
2.5 mins incline=6 speed=9
2.5 mins inclined=0 speed=11.5

And ssssstretchhhh it all out!!

♡lubullu

Gozleme Turkish Cafe

If you had started reading on of my first posts on food, it was about gozleme and how much I love it. I am a big fan of these savoury thin crisp and juicy inside pancakes(?) ever since I had my hands on them at a local farmers market stall. So when I got ditched by my friend for a lunch date I decided I will just check out this store which is next to, or in Queen Victoria Market.

I walked in not expecting anything as I had done no previous research, but just attracted to the word ‘gozleme’. It is actually the name of the cafe, Gozleme Turkish Cafe, located on 115-121 Victoria street right at the edge of Queen Victoria Market.

Gozleme cafe inside view

It can be entered from either side of the shop, via Victoria street or from the markets. It is near the fruit and vegies stalls and hence I did my shopping and decided to rest my tired arms and legs whilst enjoying a gozleme.

Mushroom, spinach and feta gozleme and latte

So, to be honest I was very disappointed with the gozleme as the fillings were barely there, and I guess I’ve been spoilt with having awesome gozleme until now. However, the coffee was surprisingly good. The milk was frothed nice and smooth and had a hint of sweetness. The coffee flavour was not intense but smooth and rich. Not my usual favourite, but definitely a nice break in between market shopping.

The other people seemed to be ordering more on the meat side, so maybe I should try that next time. Apparently the Lamb, feta and spinach gozleme is good…

♡lubullu